Given that he was responsible for the musical themes, atmosphere and voice of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, it was a good bet that Howard Shore would return to provide the audio accompaniment for Bilbo Baggins’ quest in the Hobbit films. But it wasn’t 100% confirmed – after all, while we’re pretty certain Jackson would have gone straight to Shore, there’s a chance the composer could have decided it was too much of a commitment and gracefully declined. But nope – he’s back.

Talking to Canadian paper The Province, Shore revealed that he is now getting set to devote another chunk of his life to crafting the music of Middle-earth. "We've talked about making these movies for many years, at least since 2002," says the composer. "It looks like finally it's going to be happening. I'll be working on it for the next three years - it's going to consume a lot of my time and work now."

It’s certainly reassuring to know that Shore’s score will be serenading Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, James Nesbitt, Aidan Turner, Rob Kazinsky, Stephen Hunter, Graham McTavish, John Callen, Mark Hadlow and the rest on their journey. We can’t wait to hear what Shore comes up with this time…